The Charge

"One Tree Hill. One last time."

Opening Statement

The speed with which this season hit DVD is quite impressive. One Tree
Hill's finale aired only a couple weeks before the ninth and final season
was released. Was it done to gratify rabid fans, or out of concern that the show
would be out of sight and out of mind? Either way, there were a few story lines
I've not seen dealt with before, and they hooked me enough to wish there were
more episodes. So kudos to One Tree Hill for that.

Facts of the Case

To appease the fan base, The CW decided to grant One Tree Hill an
abbreviated ninth season. Even though Season Eight felt like the end, the
writers struggled to craft stories that would carry these characters through
thirteen additional episodes.

The Evidence

Since many people may still be catching up with this season, I'm going to
avoid discussing anything spoilerish. However, I will say my biggest problem
with One Tree Hill is its lack of consistency. For half of the cast, it's
as if the writers felt they had to have the characters involved, relegating them
to rather juvenile stories. The rest wind up being gifted with plot lines that
carry the season.

I fully understand and appreciate the need to build drama and balance it
with humor, but Season Nine feels too much like One Tree Hill is catering
to different audiences. On the one hand, we have adult stories that serve to not
only reflect on who these characters are, but point to where they might go in
life. On the other hand, we have stories you'd find on any teen drama. After
nine seasons, these teenagers have long since grown up, so why continue to
showcase young people problems? Because your audience might have some teens in
it?! This was a missed opportunity to really cement a cast of adult
characters.

Presented in standard definition 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen with a Dolby
5.1 Surround mix, the video and audio are just as you would expect from a
current network series. The problems with this set are due to the compression,
rather than the source material. With only thirteen episodes, why cram five
episodes to a disc and risk any type of loss? Was bumping up the set from three
to four discs really so cost prohibitive?

The bonus features are nice, but not packed to the gills. I suspect there'll
be a complete series set at some point, with all the bells and whistles a
devoted fan could want. Here we get a lone commentary track, gag reel, some
deleted scenes, and a couple of featurettes, one of which is an in-depth Q&A
session with the cast.

Closing Statement

I'm all for letting a series wrap on its own terms. The One Tree Hill
gang owes this ninth season to their fans, so I hope this release makes them
happy.

The Verdict

Not Guilty.

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